Are the Big Builds Over in Second Life?

The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.

Alan Watts

           In my wanderings near and far over the last five plus years in Second Life (SL), I’ve been noticing something in my peripatetic existence inworld.  (Significant Other’s eyes roll and I hear “Not again!” whispered just loudly enough for me to hear.)

          I’ve noticed that many older and large builds are slowly going away and are being

replaced by newer ones.

          So far so good, as someone once told me, the new always replaces the old and is a healthy sign. 

          But, there is a subtle change occurring here and that’s what this story is about.  

          When I first arrived inworld, I encountered many large, complicated builds which were amazing reproductions of sites either from Real Life (RL) or from fiction.  The attention to detail was fantastic and one could lose one’s self in them for hours.  (Significant Other can be heard saying, “And, some of us did!”)  

          The catch with these builds was not very residents were about.  In some cases, I never met anyone whenever I’d visit.  

          Two examples of elaborate builds that are now lost to us are The Hanging Gardens of Babylon and Phaze Demesnes.  

          Without a doubt, new builds are springing up to replace the ones lost. 

          However, they tend to be less elaborate and more focused on the social aspects of life inworld than their predecessors were.  Evidenced by the numbers of visitors running around whenever I happen to rezz in.  

          Why is this occurring inworld?

          There may be several reasons at work here.

          First, tier fees, a perennial favorite, may be too high. 

          The move to mesh might be another reason. 

          As these sims became bigger and bigger, it just may have been too much effort to maintain them. 

          Changing tastes in what people want to experience inworld, or, perhaps more simply, the owners, builders, and whoever else may once have been involved simply lost interest.         

          Who really knows why?

          The fact is there’s a shift taking place inworld. 

          What does this portend for the future?

          Will SL be more about the social and less about the technical?

          Could this be a drawback in anticipation of Project Sansar from Linden Lab?  

          Could this be a hint of the aging of the SL community and lead to a SLEXIT?  (Sorry couldn’t resist!  Significant Other just ran screaming from the room.)

          Something’s definitely afoot.  And, yes, large established build like 1920s Berlin are still with us.  (In fact, Berlin just celebrated their seventh anniversary!)  

          I’m unsure whether this change is good or bad for the SL community.  This could go either way!

          What are your thoughts?  

          Please share them with my three loyal readers and me and possibly we’ll return to this topic again in the not too distant future!  

As always, I’m grateful to all inworld for their kindness and time in stopping to talk with a stranger who was passing through their lives.  

My Twitter handle is @webspelunker.  Please feel free to follow me and I’d be happy to follow you.

I can be found on Google+ as webspelunker Ghostraven.

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I welcome feedback from readers, please either comment on my blog or e-mail me at webspelunker@gmail.com . 

          If you would like to read about my other adventures in Second Life please click here. 

          Open roads and kind fires!